State of the global energy system

Shane White at worldenergydata.org has an excellent, data-driven site about global and country-by-country emissions and energy use trends, as well as a newsfeed and a primer on climate change:

• World energy trends: worldenergydata.org/world-energy-trends
• Country energy trends: worldenergydata.org/country-energy-trends
• Greenhouse emissions: worldenergydata.org/greenhouse-gas-emissions
• Climate change: worldenergydata.org/climate-change
• Newsfeed: worldenergydata.org/the-anthropocene 

The big picture, as illustrated below, is that global fossil fuel carbon dioxide emissions continue to rise, after a Covid blip, and the production of coal, oil and gas all reached record highs in 2023. The most recent IEA report projects emissions peaking by 2030, though the 2023 UN Production Gap report suggested it could be a few years later than that. 

And the country-by-country breakdown shows China’s emissions at more than 30% of the global total, more than double that of the USA in second place, and quadruple that of India in third place. Australia comes in at number 17, with 1.1% of global emissions. 

 

Chart 1: Global fossil fuel CO2 emissions to 2023; and national shares 

Q: Are new liquid airline fuels good climate policy? A: Pigs might fly.

by Mark Carter

The Australian government has recently provided $1.7 billion in funding to commercialise ‘net zero innovations’ including the manufacture of ‘low carbon liquid fuels’ for the aviation sector, otherwise known as ‘Sustainable’ Aviation Fuels (SAF). The minister for transport, Catherine King, says the government is “working to decarbonise Australia’s transport system” and this funding will “support emissions reduction” in the aviation sector. According to her department’s Transport and Infrastructure Net Zero Consultation Roadmap, SAF is the primary way aviation can maximise its contribution to net zero emissions by 2050. 

But don’t be misled. These new fuels are not sustainable. Nowhere are the tonnes of CO2 emissions they can reduce or need to reduce stated. Their use will therefore greenwash growing fossil fuel emissions from Australian aviation.